Covering third parties and independent candidates since 2008

As reported on Ballot Access News, the socialist Peace & Freedom Party has nominated comedienne Roseanne Barr for president and selected anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan as her running mate at the party’s August 4 convention.

The presidential nomination was completed after two ballots since Barr did not receive a majority in the first round of voting. In that round, she won only 29 votes versus 18 for Freedom Socialist Party nominee Stephen Durham, 12 for Socialist Party USA nominee Stewart Alexander, and four abstentions. In the final tally, Barr won with 37 votes over Durham’s 16, and Alexander’s six with five abstaining.

As for other candidates that did not receive any votes: Party for Socialism and Liberation nominee Peta Lindsay chose to withdraw prior to the vote and backed Barr; Justice Party nominee, former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, who won the nonbinding California Peace & Freedom primary in June, withdrew from the race several days ago.

Sheehan won the vice presidential nomination with 50 votes versus 14 who abstained. She had previously voiced her intentions to serve on the ticket.

According to Richard Winger, the Peace & Freedom Party, which is already on the ballot in California is now attempting to qualify the Barr-Sheehan ticket for ballot access in Florida.

Im guessing Hawaii, California, Florida, LA, CO, and a number of other easy-ballot access states will be managed by the P&Fs. This probably isn’t how they imagined they’d roll out their name nationally, but it’s a great way to do it. It’s a shame they didnt get Barr and Sheehan on board months ago (and maybe Mayor Anderson?)

the United States has encouraged the worst tendencies of the Israeli government as it pursues policies of occupation, apartheid, assassination, illegal settlements, blockades, building of nuclear bombs, indefinite detention, collective punishment, and defiance of international law. Instead of allying with the courageous proponents of peace within Israel and Palestine, our government has rewarded consistent abusers of human rights. There is no peace or justice or democracy at the end of such a path. We must reset U.S. policy regarding Israel and Palestine, as part of a broader revision of U.S. policy towards the Middle East.

Does all this sound “zionist”? No. People were disappointed in Jill Stein because they thought she didn’t focus enough on being anti-foreign intervention, there’s just no basis for their concerns though.

With Cindy Sheehan on board, this is actually quite an appealing ticket for anti-imperialist voters. Too bad they’ll be on the ballot in less than five states. Both the PFP and the Greens should hold their conventions earlier in the year.

Deran: As far as Stein and Israel go, the Green Party supports the quackish notion of a “one state solution.”

Some people thought that freeing the slaves — and then keeping them in the U.S. — was a quackish “one state solution.” They figured that blacks were just too different from whites to share a country with them.

I suppose you’d have been on the side of those who wanted to ship freed slaves back to Africa.

However, the “one state solution” worked in the U.S.

And the ‘one state solution” (Israel annexing the West Bank and Gaza, and giving equal Israeli citizenship to the Arabs living there, including the right or return for their relatives) is the only humane, libertarian, and non-racist, non-theocratic solution.

@ 21, Perhaps you are ignorant of the very concept of “one state solution.”

It calls for merging Israel, Gaza, and West Bank into on multinational, multi-religious but secular state. Neither Jewish or Muslim or Arab or Christian. A secular democracy where all would have equal individual rights.

I am well aware of the notion of a “one state solution”, I’m pretty sure the idea goes back to the early-1900s.

At thsi point in history, with Israeli society deteriorating economincally and racism becoming so predominant among Jewish Israelis, and between Jewish Israelis, and especially the expansion of the inherently racist and illegal colonization of occupied Palestine, all makes me think the number of Jewish Israelis that would support ewaul rights for Arabs is very small.

And after decades of Jewish Israeli apartheid against Arabs inside Israel and inside the illegally occupied Palestinian territories, I don’t see Palestinians being so keen on joining the Jewish state of Israel.

As far as theocracy. Hamas is in power in Gaza only because they have seized power in a coup. In the West Bank, and in Gaza, there is increasing opposition to Islamism and social conservativism.

I think if the US cut off Israel’s massive welfare payouts the Jewish state would scramble to get the illegal colonists out of the West Bank, return the stolen water rights and open the borders, those three moves would set the staage for a solidly independent and sustainable Palestine. IMHO.

I’m with the majority of folks who think this would have been a decent ticket, had it been formed earlier this year. That said, having a celebrity candidate can only make people curious, and if they like what they see, they may get involved in trying to put that party on their state’s ballot.